


A Moment's Respite

by mako_lies (wingeddserpent)



Category: Final Fantasy XIII Series, Final Fantasy XIII-2
Genre: Families of Choice, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, POV Second Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-15
Updated: 2015-08-15
Packaged: 2018-04-14 21:07:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4580163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wingeddserpent/pseuds/mako_lies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Noel and Serah return to see Hope after the events of Augusta Tower.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Moment's Respite

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Lesca Fenix (lescafenix)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lescafenix/gifts).



_Historia Crux_

The Historia Crux is a relief, afterwards. You curl your hands tighter over Mog’s hilt as you watch the Crux flow around you, and your breath finally calms. But you can’t stop the shaking and instead you can only hope Noel won’t notice. It seems telling that Mog is choosing to remain a sword rather than turn back. “Noel?” you ask, twisting to see where he flows with the stream. “You okay?”

You know the answer before he says it. Noel has never been one to complain. After all, once you’ve lived through the end of days, most everything pales in comparison. You never get used to friends dying, though, and what happened to Hope in the future you only just barely avoided was—horrifying. Your pulse picks up again; _Hope and Alyssa standing where you stood, his arms flying over his face and then_ —

“I’m all right. Serah. Are you holding up okay?” The concern that bleeds into his voice is expected. It’s always easier to worry about somebody else than it is to worry about yourself. You learned that firsthand watching Lightning fret over you. 

It’s the same tone he uses whenever you have a vision. Neither of you want to admit it happens more and more often these days. The deeper Noel and you fall into the timeline, the more your visions come. You haven’t told him about the ashy figures that star in you dreams, playing out a future you can’t understand. Is is an actual future, or is it your imagination? You don’t know. You wonder if Yeul would know, but there is no good way to ask her. So you let yourself assume they’re nothing but dreams, but you always wake sweating. 

“I’m fine.” You try for some sort of smile that feels wrong on your face. Even Gadot wouldn’t buy it. Noel watches you more intently as you float, and you examine the stream of time rather than meet his gaze. “I… I’m worried about Hope. Before we go see what the future we created is, do you think we could go visit him at Yaschas Massif?”

Noel stretches his arms out, twisting in the air. “We’ve got time.”

_Yaschas Massif 1X_

The air of the Yascha Massif is always clear and bright. This version of the Massif, anyway. Mog bursts bright with excitement as you climb the ramp to Hope. Your legs ache as you walk: those long hours in the Augusta Tower took their toll, and you still haven’t slept since your fights with the Proto fal’Cie. Noel walks just as unevenly behind you, his breath coming in sharp pants that make you want to press healing magic into the pores of his skin. You don’t though. There’s no cure magic for exhaustion. 

Hope is speaking to one of his researchers when you arrive. “I’d like you and your team to move forward with the southwest excavation. The artifacts left by the Farseers are absolutely worth the effort, provided we take care not to damage anything. Oh! Serah, Noel. It’s good to see you.”

He smiles as the researcher nods her head and leaves. “You too.” Noel nods at Hope, but you can see the relief. This is a dead friend who doesn’t have to remain dead. Hope is here and whole, still smiling. There are no robots in this Hope’s future. Not if you have anything to say about it. “We interrupting anything?”

“Not at all.” Hope closes the folder in his hands. “You two look dead on your feet. I have some extra bedrolls and rations, if you need rest.”

Noel glances over at you. You _are_ tired. Your nails are caked with dirt and your hair hangs heavy with sweat, and your body trembles to remind you that you fought a giant robot multiple times in the last few hours. “I wanted to talk to you, Hope. But, Noel—why don’t you get some rest?” you say, your voice coming out stronger than you thought it would. Noel nods, tension in his muscles unwinding. 

He never seems to sleep enough, and you think it might be because it’s too quiet. From what he’s said, everyone used to sleep close together where he is from. To look out for each other. When it’s just you and him and Mog, maybe it reminds him too much of the end. You don’t want to think about it. His life is hard to put into perspective. The only way to help him is to fix the future; from what Yeul said, the two of you are on the right path. It's something you have to believe, anyway.

For a moment, you can almost forget your vision: Caius with a deep darkness in his eyes and Noel falling and— you shake your head and smile at Hope. “If it isn’t a bother, I mean.”

Noel is quick to leave, and you wonder if you should go with him. If you should guard his sleep or send Mog to guard his sleep, because after the Tower, you’d be surprised if he _didn’t_ dream. And it still is easier to think of the Tower than Academia with its crawling Cie’th. You smile at Mog. “You’ve earned some rest, too. I’ll keep the others with me, okay?” You hold up one of the tamed monster crystals.  

For a moment, Mog hesitates. Then he nods. “Okay, kupo. You come and get me if you need me. Okay, kupo?”

“Okay,” you agree with another smile. Your face is beginning to hurt, but you keep the smile in place as Mog flies after Noel. 

Noel catches the toy moogle in his arms, pulling Mog to his chest for a hug, and you grimace. This isn’t easy for any of you, but Noel always seems to handle things better than you do. Maybe it’s just that he’s had more practice. You turn just as Hope presses his palm against your shoulder. “You look exhausted,” he says, that old healer tone back in his voice. Snow told you, once, about how Hope carefully healed each and every one of them during the nights on Pulse. He’d carefully smooth over every scrape and bruise, while even Fang humored him. A few times, Snow claimed Lightning even smiled at the care. You still don’t know if you believe Snow or not, but it’s a nice story. You want to believe it’s true. “Are you sure you don’t want to sleep?”

“Positive. I don’t think I could, anyway.”

Hope watches you with that same clarity he does everything else. He’s older than you now, and he’s aged without you and Sazh and Lightning and Snow and his dad. All of this seems so out of control. And you watched him _die_.

You whisper, “I’m—this time traveling thing. We’re trying to fix the timeline, I understand that. But just because we fix one future, that doesn’t make the other futures any less _real_. It’s still real for the people there. It’s still real enough Noel and I can go back to them.” The sun drifts overhead, but there is a future with a dark eclipse that you could go back and see. You could go and have this exact conversation with the Hope here, with the two of them never realizing that you told him twice. “The future Noel’s from still lays ahead of us. And what about when we _do_ fix the timeline? What if—“ There are so many what-ifs. Snow used to tell you all the time not to worry so much about things you didn’t have any control over. But anxiety is one of your special talents, and Hope squeezes your shoulder as his compassion bleeds green through his eyes. “What if we fix the timeline, and I never get to see Noel again? What if—?“

“Serah. I—I don’t know what happened that has you so scared, but you could drive yourself crazy with this. You can’t know until you fix the timeline. Trust yourself and Noel. Trust Lightning. Beyond that, all you can do is take everything one moment at a time.” He laughs with a wry twist to his mouth. “Not that I imagine it’s easy to do when we’re talking gaps of hundreds of years. But the whole scope is too much for anyone to handle, I imagine.”

You can see it—Yeul falling as her heart stops. Yes, the timeline is too much for anyone. Even Yeul. “I didn’t mean to unload like that.” You shake your head. Seeing Hope and Alyssa die, right after all those Cie’th... Maybe you _should_ have gone straight to bed. 

“Lightning is proud of you, wherever she is. You know that, right?” Hope tells you, quietly. “Keep at it, Serah. We need you. I'll help however I can. I just wish there was more I could do for you.”

The air is thick in your throat as you nod. “Thanks, Hope. I really appreciate it. I—I think I should go check on Noel, and sleep. He’s having a hard time, too. But we fixed it. That future. Everything should be—should be okay.” But you saw it, the future where Caius cut Noel down. Everything isn’t going to be okay. But you can’t tell anyone. No. Just have to find a way to prevent that future, too.

“Come to breakfast with Alyssa and me in the morning? We don’t have much, but I’d like to see you again, before you go. If that’s okay?” He fumbles for words and you smile at him.

“Of course.” 

When he lets your shoulder go, you feel suddenly cold. But you make your way to where Noel is curled protectively around Mog, and you fall asleep almost as soon as you lay down. One moment at a time is the best you can do. You can’t afford to lose sight of the details. 


End file.
